Immigration QA

How many violations in this post can you guess? It seems the immigration scammers become bolder every day. Today I came across this little gem posting for indentured servitude amongst the foreign student population. And why not?  As I said before in previous posts about IT consultant abuse , there are no prevailing wage requirements for foreign student trainees like there is for H1B visa workers. However, this erstwhile recruiter forgot the U.S. has another area of law that governs fair labor for everyone. For fun, how many violations in this post can you guess? So, in the spirit of Jeopardy and honoring Alex Trebeck, here are the "questions": 1) What is a maximum age requirement? 2) What is hiring someone from a specific immigration category? 3) What is inducement into prohibited work arrangements? 4) What is the requirement of work authorization before a job offer? For verification of these violations and more, you can visit the   USCIS explanati

This is going to be an ongoing series of postings about choosing an immigration lawyer. Today I chatted with someone who needed a lawyer because his mother died but left property in India and has a dispute with his sister. It was mainly a counseling session on how to focus the issues, sift out emotions, and pick the right lawyer. To recap: One. Absolutely be aware of any impending deadlines and tell a prospective lawyer immediately. I advised this individual to send a letter overnight express to request additional time to respond to a motion so he could find another lawyer. He can even ask his previous lawyer as a courtesy to e-file it. Two. Dial back the emotional fervor. Seek grief counseling. If there is no relevant death in the circumstances, think about one’s emotions in general. This helps a potential lawyer analyze your situation and decipher facts from emotions. Three. When looking for attorneys, focus on the factual issues. Identify your specific role in the matter to a po

The recent USCIS memo explaining unlawful presence rules in the context of F1 student status has reverberated through the legal community It has also posed many questions.  I posit here that the memo is aimed primarily at curbing Day 1 abuses. Attorneys across the country are reporting their clients are receiving RFEs investigating past maintenance of F1 status, including past enrollment of OPT, CPT and Day 1 CPT in particular.   Maintaining valid status is a requirement of changing to a new status such as work and most categories of permanent residence.  The H1B petitions submitted by Chaudhary Law Office are not in premium processing and thus early in the application process, so we have not gotten any RFEs  as yet.  We expect that we will and anticipate similar requests for proof of status during our clients’ student days. But, the increase in RFEs, plus the new unlawful presence memo, point to one thing: If you are not enrolled in CPT properly, for EXAMPLE if CPT was used ONLY

A body of evidence is required to meet the standard for "bona fide marital relationship." I was recently asked the following question: I am planning to get married in India later this year. We will opt for court marriage instead of traditional one. For visa interview purposes, is court marriage sufficient to prove that marriage is legal. Do we need to do traditional marriage to prove marriage is legal? Answer: I get this question a lot, because it's a good one.   Traditional marriages are usually better to demonstrate that a "bona fide marital relationship" exists. But, they are not always necessary because the method of marriage is not the only determinant of a bona fide marital relationship. It's not even the primary determinant. One must provide a whole body of evidence to meet the standard. So it's not whether the marriage is legal, but whether the relationship is real. I recommend reading the instructions for form I-130, or some peop